As the value and use of information increases, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One aspect of this evolution has been a progressively growing demand for increased storage capacity in portable memory devices. With the advent of personal computers and workstations, it is often necessary to remove the medium on which digital data is stored. A user may desire to remove a storage medium to carry it to a different site and/or a different computer system. It may also be desirable to remove the storage medium to a secure location when the stored computer data is sensitive, secret, or a back-up copy is needed.
One option is the use of hard disk drives contained in removable cartridges. Indeed, removable hard disk drives are rising in popularity as a way to access frequently used information, as well as a convenient way to store back-up or sensitive information. Removable hard disk drives are typically housed in a larger shell or cartridge having isolating materials to protect the hard disk drive from dirt or other contaminates, or from a free fall onto a hard surface. Thus, a cartridge 90 (FIG. 1) may be a ruggedized container that houses a hard disk drive. The cartridge is then connected to a larger computer system or network via a carrier or installed on a desktop or server system. The carrier typically includes interface and control circuits to operably connect the hard disk drive inserted into the carrier to the motherboard of the host desktop or server system. The present invention allows the removable hard disk drive to be accessed at any computer with a standard connection, such as a USB or SATA connector. Either the original cartridge is reinserted or a different cartridge can be inserted back into the carrier or dock installed in the desktop or server. This insertion/removal cycle may occur several times throughout the work day.
As discussed above, each time the hard disk drive cartridge is inserted into the carrier, it must be electrically and logically interconnected with the host computer by way of a plurality of interfaces connectors. To that end, the carrier bridges the interface between the host computer and the removable hard disk drive. A hard disk drive typically supports a device interface and command set, such as the ATA protocol, which does not support functions directed to removable media. Therefore, one technical challenge to the implementation of removable hard disk systems is presenting an appropriate device interface to the host computer. U.S. Pat. No. 6,633,445, for example, discloses a removable disk storage system where the carrier includes the drive control circuitry, while the removable cartridge includes the disk media and read/write heads. The carrier presents an ATAPI-style interface for communication with the host computer, and converts received commands suitable for an ATA protocol interface to communicate with the hard drive control electronics.
The patent applications identified above, for example, disclose an internal docking station for ruggedized removable disk cartridges where the dock is installed in a drive bay inside the computer housing. For ease of use or other reasons, docking mechanisms where the carrier is external to the host computing system are also desirable. The use of external docking mechanisms, such as the docking mechanism illustrated in FIGS. 2A & 2B does present certain technical challenges. For example, allowing the user the ability to remove the cartridge before completion of read/write operations may cause damage to the hard disk drive housed in the cartridge.
In light of the foregoing, a need in the art exists for methods, apparatuses and systems directed to an external docking mechanism for a cartridge-based data storage unit that prevents removal of the cartridge during read/write or other operations of the hard disk drive. A need also exists in the art for an external docking mechanism that facilitates insertion and removal of the cartridge. Embodiments of the present invention substantially fulfill this need.